Comparison with Behaviorism and Psychoanalysis

It is useful to compare Lewin’s field theory with the two other major theories
of the time: behaviorism and psychoanalysis. Lewin’s field theory can be
summarized by the equation B = f(P,E), or, “Behavior is a function of person
and environment.” In other words, behavior is function of the life space of a
total environment as perceived by the individual. In psychoanalytic thought,
behavior is a function of the history of the individual. For example, past
childhood experience is supposed to have a direct impact on current psychological
processes. In contrast, Lewin’s theory is ahistorical. Although the
individual’s past may influence that person’s approach and construal of the
psychological field, its influence is only indirect, as behavior is a function of
the current and immediate life space.

Lewin’s field theory differs from behaviorism on at least two key dimensions.
First, Lewin emphasized the subjectivity of the psychological field. To
predict and understand behavior successfully, a therapist needs to describe
the situation from the viewpoint of the individual whose behavior is under
consideration, not from the viewpoint of an observer. Second, Lewin’s theory
emphasizes that behavior must be understood as a function of the life
space or situation as a whole. In other words, behavior is motivated by the
multitude of often interdependent forces affecting an individual, as opposed
to one or two salient rewards or reinforcers that may be present.